Editing Toaru Majutsu no Index:AgneseSS Chapter4 (section)

===Part 2===

It was possible that conferring with the Index Librorum Prohibitorum would have solved their problem right away, but she was highly prized. Being a member of the Anglican Church did not grant you access to all Anglican equipment and personnel. And in this case, Agnese’s group had previously tried to harm the Index Librorum Prohibitorum more than once, so it was hardly surprising the higher ups automatically refused to let them contact her.

In that sense, there was still demand for a failed database like this one.

Very few people could access the Anglican Church’s greatest secrets, but less-trusted members could still access these smaller secrets. So by searching here, they could avoid making an enemy of the sensitive higher ups.

Wield your rusty hoes and spades to kill the knight wearing brightly polished armor!

In every era, the commoners were asked pull off the seemingly impossible by gathering in large numbers.

“Now, then. Let’s get started on all the delightful work awaiting us.”

Needless to say, even 28,000 was a lot.

That was the size of a small library.

To check through that more efficiently, they would have to start by narrowing down what they were hoping to investigate. It was the same as a search engine in that sense. You needed to know what words to type into the box first.

“We want to find a point in common between those three cases.”

“I know that, but they all used completely different spells.” Angelene nervously expressed her pessimism. “The Barcelona one used Catholic forensic cleanup, the Calais one summoned a ghost ship using multiple types of spells, and the Frankfurt one used the Ceremony of Ba Moun, which is…um, a Voodoo curse, right?”

“If we wanted to force a connection, I guess the Barcelona one was linked to that Spanish restaurant run by Nihili Padpois, who was born in Haiti. And wasn’t it likely his wife was killed by a Voodoo curse? Still…”

Lucia trailed off there.

Yes, Voodoo referred to a lot of different things and they had no idea if that other case also had to do with the Ceremony of Ba Moun.

Also…

“If we were trying to link everything to Voodoo, what about the Hood battlecruiser that attacked Calais?”

“The Yucatan Peninsula is in the Caribbean Sea!” exclaimed Angelene. “There must be tons of ancient Mayan cities there!!”

“Um, and???”

Agnese was honestly confused. If that counted as a connection, they would have to research everything from the Cuban Missile Crisis to the Chupacabra, but Angelene did not seem to care.

Agnese pulled her phone from her habit’s sleeve, started up the video app, and asked again.

“What about the Hood battlecruiser that attacked Calais? Now, Sister Angelene, repeat that shocking truth for us again! And make sure to smile for the camera☆”

“Stop that! You’re planning to dig this up 3 years from now to show it to me, aren’t you!? Okay, fine, I give up!! None of the 5 magicians who fit together like puzzle pieces were Voodoo, were they?”

“If we want to really overthink this, there’s the fact that the Necessarius necromancer named Isabella Theism was involved with all those cases. Her necromancy combines a number of different things, but she is well-versed in Voodoo.”

“Thank you so much for another of your crazy conspiracy theories, Sister Lucia! Don’t worry, I got a stunning profile shot of that one☆ We can all look forward to viewing this masterpiece at a later date.”

“Wait, you were still recording!!!???”

Lucia bristled and yelled, but that was what she got for suspecting people based on no evidence. They wanted the quickest route to the truth, so they did not want to start playing a game of concentration where they flipped over the cards at random. Especially when each card they flipped over could conceivably cost someone their life based on unwarranted suspicion.

Reasoning based on a foundation of mistrust and speculation would only lead to vague conspiracy theories.

They had to build a foundation of solid facts, no matter how insignificant they might seem. Otherwise, their visit to this vast database would be in vain.

So…

“There is one thing we know for sure.”

“If you know the answer, then cut the dramatics and just tell us, Sister Agnese. Since when were you one of those detectives who sits around with a knowing smile until the murderer has killed a few more people!?”

Agnese grabbed her backtalking but beloved buddy Angelene by the collar and squeezed tight while continuing her explanation with a smile.

“We know that all three cases could be dealt with using our Catholic spells☆:”

“Agh, agagah, my throat!?”

“Sister Agnese, that goes without saying, so why bring it up now?”

“I’m saying that each enemy was someone we could defeat.” Agnese released her beloved buddy. “Maybe that was an issue of compatibility. Whoever Person X is and however they are boosting the methods used by the individual magicians, the end result was vulnerable to a Catholic counterattack. I’m not about to say all the world’s mystical powers can be generally classified as light magic and dark magic, but what if this is something similar? What if the toys distributed by Person X ''are extremely vulnerable to the glory of god''?”

The mystical powers focused on the Son of God worked that way.

Believers would be saved.

And while taking the reverse might be going too far, it did imply that nonbelievers would not be saved. Christianity refused to accept the miracles and mystical powers (claimed to be) caused by those who worshiped other gods.

Lucia placed a hand on her chin.

“But wasn’t the person behind the Barcelona case a Catholic priest?”

“Are you familiar with Saint Vitus? Or maybe Saint Sebastian?”

“…”

Lucia fell silent.

She understood what Agnese was trying to say.

“With one, it was the Slavic god Svantovit. With the other, it was the Celtic hero Cuchulain.” Agnese shrugged. “Sadly, it happens. Christianity is supposed to be monotheistic, but sometimes ''older gods or legendary figures end up a part of it under a changed name.'' Although even those cases aren’t as bad as Saint Ursula who was said to have died along with 11,000 virgins due to a simple misreading of a number or Saint Christopher who was almost certainly a completely fictional creation.”

“Are you suggesting that priest’s spell was ''an adulteration''?”

“Well, he seriously believed gold never lost its shine and repelled curses. That’s something you find in every part of the world, including Egypt and Scandinavia. But that’s why this calls for thorough research. They might have thought their spells were Christian, summoning, or Voodoo, ''but it’s possible those spells were actually part of an entirely different system.'' Fortunately, we have no shortage of research material here. Doesn’t that sound worth investigating?”